Field
Embodiments of the present invention relate to lens blanks for fluid lenses and methods of manufacturing fluid lenses.
Background Art
Basic fluid lenses have been known since about 1958, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,836,101 to Swart, incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. More recent examples may be found in “Dynamically Reconfigurable Fluid Core Fluid Cladding Lens in a Microfluidic Channel” by Tang et al., Lab Chip, 2008, vol. 8, p. 395, and in WIPO publication WO2008/063442, each of which is incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. These applications of fluid lenses are directed towards photonics, digital phone and camera technology, and microelectronics.
Fluid lenses have also been proposed for ophthalmic applications (see, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 7,085,065 to Silver, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety). Power adjustment in fluid lenses has been accomplished for example by injecting fluid into a lens cavity, by electrowetting, application of ultrasonic impulse, and by utilizing swelling forces in a cross-linked polymer upon introduction of a swelling agent, such as water.